Various types of surfactant systems are known in the prior art, some of which include non-ionic detergents and tertiary amine oxides or amphoteric detergents. Occasionally, small proportions of a quaternary ammonium compound may be incorporated therein as a fabric softener or as an optional germicide. The present invention relates to an improved surfactant system including a least 8-50% by weight and preferably about 10-13% by weight, of a quaternary ammonium halide. Cleaning compositions incorporating the surfactant system of the invention have improved detergent properties compared with compositions containing only a non-ionic detergent combined with a quaternary ammonium halide, a tertiary amine oxide or amphoteric detergent combined with a quaternary ammonium halide, or an insufficient proportion of quaternary ammonium halide combined with a mixture of non-ionic detergent and tertiary amine oxide or amphoteric detergent.
It is a principal object of the present invention to provide a surfactant system having improved detergent properties compared with prior art surfactant systems.
Another object of the invention is to provide a surfactant system concentrate that is combined with other ingredients and diluted with water to form at least 14 distinct preparations for cleaning hard surfaces.
It is a related object of the invention to provide a method for enhancing detersiveness with respect to vegetable oil and petroleum oils of a surfactant system comprising an aqueous solution of a non-ionic detergent and an amine oxide or amphoteric detergent.
Additional objects and advantages of the surfactant system of the invention will become apparent to persons skilled in the art from the following specification.